Search

Five large rivers, Dniester, Southern Bug, Dnieper, Don, and Kuban, represent the major fluvial systems of the Western Steppe. Their catchments occupy a vast area in southeast Europe, extending eastward from the Carpathians toward the Volga and northward from the Crimea peninsula and Caucasus Mountains to the Valday Hills. The significance of these rivers is highlighted by the fact that the Dnieper is the third and the Don is the fourth largest rivers of Europe. Tributaries of these rivers, the Donets, Desna, Prypiat, Byrezina, Sozh, Seym, Belaya and Laba, are also of considerable length and drain relatively large catchments. The territory of the Western Steppe includes many Russian provinces in the north, east, and south, and Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova. Although the rivers of Western Steppe originate in different biogeographic regions and hence principally differ by source and hydrologic flow regime, their lower reaches are in the Steppic region and characterized by similar physiography, climate, economy and history. This chapter discusses six rivers, including the primary rivers Dniester, Southern Bug, Dnieper, Don, and Kuban and describes the Donets, the largest tributary of the Don, because the Donets experiences the greatest (in the region) pressure from industrialization. These rivers represent the diverse physiographic and biological characteristics of the steppe region. The chapter also provides abbreviated information for other major tributaries: the Dniester tributary Reut and Dnieper tributaries Teterev, Prypiat, Desna, and Psel and presents the general characteristics of these river catchments.